Transfer block for ring setting machines



G. J. RUNDBLAD ET AL TRANSFER BLOCK FOR RING SETTING MACHINES FiledMarch 7, 1951 8 Sheets-Sheet l p 6, 1955 7 \G. J. RUNDBLAD ETAL2,717,099

TRANSFER BLOCK FOR RING SETTING MACHINES F'iled March 7, 1951 8Sheets-Sheet 2 G. J. RUNDBLAD ETAL 2,717,099

TRANSFER BLOCK FOR RING SETTING MACHINES Sept. 6, 1955 8 Sheets-Sheet 3Filed March '7, 1951 Sept. 6, 1955 G. J. RUNDBLAD ET AL TRANSFER BLOCKFOR RING SETTING MACHINES Filed March 7, 1951 8 Sheets-Sheet 4 p 6, 1955G. J. RUNDBLAD ETAL 2,717,099

TRANSFER BLOCK FOR RING SETTING MACHINES Filed March 7, 1951 8Sheets-Sheet 5 l W H VII/I Sept. 6, 1955 G. J. RUNDBLAD ETAL 2,

TRANSFER BLOCK FOR RING SETTING MACHINES Filed March 7, 1951 8Sheets-Sheetfi 1m mg mm m2; .7 Y

$3} Eugazimu;

P 1955 G. J. RuNDBLAb ETAL 2,717,099

TRANSFER BLOCK FOR RING SETTING MACHINES iled March '7, 1951 8Sheets-Sheet 7 466 34 5@ ALL Sept 6, 1955 G. J. RUNDBLAD ETAL 2,717,099

TRANSFER BLOCK FOR RING SETTiNG MACHINES Filed March '7, 1951 8Sheets-Sheet 8 htllllllllllf TRANSFER BLOCK FOR RING SETTING C IN SGeorge J. Rundblad, Wheaton, and Eremeldo Cairelli,

Chicago, Ill., assignors to Wilson-Jones Company, Chicago, Ill., acorporation of Massachusetts Application March 7, 1951, Serial No.214,414

12 Claims. (Cl. 221-493) This invention relates to a transfer block forring setting machines and is particularly concerned with means forautomatically removing a ring from a row of similarly aligned rings andpositioning it on a setting die.

The type of ring setting machine for which the trans.- fer block isparticularly designed is fully described in the application of Buengeret a1. filed January 30, 1948, under Serial No. 5,318, which issued asPatent No. 2,667,797 on February 2, 1954. Accordingly, the structure ofthe ring setting machine will not be specifically described in thepresent application except in its relationship to the transfer blockwhich comprises the sub ject matter of the present invention.

The primary object of the present invention is to provide improved meansfor separating the end ring from a column of rings aligned on analigning rod, and to move said ring automatically into position in aring setting die so that it may be set in a prong plate. Other objectsof this invention will become apparent upon reading the followingdescription, taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, inwhichr Figure 1 is a perspective view of the transfer block embodyingthe invention, showing the actuating mechanism with the pusher bladeforward, just after it has pushed one ring on to the setting die;

Figure 2 is a perspective view of the transfer block, showing the ringaligning rod, but with the actuating mechanism omitted, with the partsin the position occu: pied after the end ring has moved from thealigning rod o he tran fer l k ut e ore th upp r plung he been movedinto its recess far enough to permit said end ring to fall into thevertical recess;

Figure 3 is a fragmentary rear perspective v ew of th a ig ng r V Figure4 is a perspective view of the transfer block just after a ring hasdropped in the vertical recess;

Figure 5 is a rear perspective view of the setting die adapted toreceive a ring from the transfer block, with a portion of the prongplate carrier strip broken away -.to show the die structure;

Figure 6 is a top view, partly in elevation and partly in section,showing the transfer block, actuating mechanism, and associated settingdie;

Figure 7 is a side elevation of the structure shown in Figure 6 and thepunch press structure associated therewith;

Figure 8 is a cross sectional view, taken along the line 8+8 of Figure 6with the punch press structure assoc ated with the setting die;

Figure 9 is a cross sectional view, taken substant ally along line 99 ofFigure 7; I

Figure 10 is a cross sectional view, taken substantially along the line10-10 of Figure 9;

Figure 11 is a cross sectional view, taken substantially along the line11--11 of Figure 8;

Figure 12 is a perspective view of a prongplate with two of its ringsset therein;

2,717,099 Eatented Sept. 6, 1955 ice Figure 13 is a front elevation ofthe transfer block with the parts in the same position as shown inFigure 1;

Figure 14 is a front elevation of the transfer block with the parts inanother stage of the ring transfer operation; and Y I Figure '15 is afront elevation of the transfer block with the parts in another stage ofthe operation. I

In the drawings, the reference numeral 2 indicates a transfer blockhaving its upper portion cut away for '1 approximately half its widthadjacent its front edge, as

indicated at 3. The cut away portion 3 communicatesdireetly with avertical recess 4 which extends from the front face 5 through the entireheight of'block 2 An aligning rod 6 has one end 7 positioned in cut awaypor- 15 tion 3 adjacent vertical recess-4. The'end 7 is held position bymeans of a bracket S'secured to ne face of a plate 9. The plate 9 isheld in space from the top of block 2 by rubber cushioning members 10and is secured in place by bolts 11 which pass through the rub 2!.) bermembers 10 so that a limited amount of movement between plate 9 andblock 2 is permitted. This move: ment is necessary because the aligningrod 6 is vibrated to shake rings 12 down towards end 7 and block 2 is,of course, stationary. The rings 12 straddle a portion of the peripheryof rod 6 and the headed ends 13 of the rings are aligned by means of analigning bar 14 which is positioned from the. peripheral surface of rod6 a distance sufficient to permit the small'ends of the rings to extendtherebetween, but close enough to prevent the headed ends 1.} frompassing therethrough. Movement of the rings inv the opposite directionis prevented by a plate 15 which is secured. in any suitable manner to aflat portion 1 6 of rod 5 formed by cutting away a portion of the rod 5adjacent end 7. The plate 15 -fits against the headed ends 13 of rings12 and its end is flush with the end 7 of rod 6.

Block 2 is provided with another recess 17 entending laterally fromvertical recess 4 and having its bottom approximately in alignment withthe bottom of cut away portion 3. The recess 17 extends rearwardly fromthe front face-5 of block 2 a distance sufficient to receive one of therings 12 from red 6. A semi-circular plunger 18' is rigidly secured to ashaft 19 which extends through an opening 20 in block 2 The opening 20extends from the de o r s 1 a l th ay thr gh the b o k I9 form a bearingfor the shaft 19. The edge .of plunger 18 adjacent the aligning. rod 6is cut away, as indicated at 2.1, to leave a projection 22 adapted toabut end 7 of the aligning rod and to receive the end ring 12 there.-from as the vibration of the aligning rod moves the rings towards thetransfer block. When the projecti n 22 receives the ring from aligningrod 6 it is positioned in vertical alignment with vertical recess 4.

,Block 2 is provided with another recess 23 in vertical alignment withrecess 17 and positioned adjacent the bottom of the block. A fiat plate5 is secured to the front face .5 of the block and covers the front ends,of recesses 1 7 and 23. A plunger 24 is rigidly secured to a 60 shaft25 which extends through an opening 26, similar to the opening 20. Theblock is also provided with a pair of vertically aligned slots 27 and 28 which extend entirely push he ai o om t e t a as 5 t t e pp s t ee-2 Sots a d 8 e mm i a w t v r r 65 s t 4 9Pi 9 te r v rse a .23 es ee e y-A S p a e bl de 9 and a ru h. la a m un ed f reciprocatory movement inslots 27 and 18, respectively. The blade 30 is rigidly secured to thefront .endof a shank 33 nd blade 31 is similarly secured ,to the frontendof ashank 34.

VA nk 35 s s ured to the rea en e 'shan an a link 36 is secured to therear end of shank A rocker arm 37 mounted on a shaft 38 pivotallymounted in a bracket 39 has one end secured to link and its opposite endsecured to link 36, as indicated at 40 and 41, respectively. Rocker arm37 is rocked by an arm 42 rigidly secured to shaft 38 and reciprocatedby any suitable means. The stud 40 which secures link 35 to rocker arm37 extends through an elongated slot 43 which permits relative movementbetween link 35 and rocker arm 37.

The stud 40 also helps secure a shoe 44 to one side of the rear portionof shank 33. Stud 40 passes through a slot 45 in shoe 44 and anotherstud 46 passes through an elongated slot 47 in the shoe so that rockerarm 37 may move shoe 44 forwardly after forward movement of link 35 andblade 30 has stopped. The link 35 is pivoted to shank 33 at 46 so thatits other end may move up or down slightly as the rocker arm 37 rocksabout its pivot 38. The shoe 44 can not be pivoted, so the slot 45 iselongated vertically to permit the stud 40 to move up wardly anddownwardly as rocker arm 37 pivots about 38. The shoe 44 has a roller 48rotatably secured to its lower wall 49 and maintained in engagement witha carnmed edge 50 of an L-shaped arm 51. A pair of tension springs 52each having one end secured to stud 40 and its other end secured to astud 53 projecting from the link 35 exert a constant force against therear end of the link 35 pulling it forwardly as soon as the arm 42starts its upward pivotal movement.

The L-shaped arm 51 is secured to one end of a lever 53, as indicated at54. The lever 53 is pivotally mounted in a recess 55 in block 2, asindicated at 56. A spring 57, seated in one wall of recess 55 andbearing against lever 53 exerts a constant force urging the rear portionof lever 53 outwardly from the block 2. The roller 48 exerts a positiveforce against the cammededge 50 of arm 51, forcing the rear portion oflever 53 inwardly against the action of spring 57 when shoe 44 is movedforwardly by rocker arm 37 afterforward movement of link 35 has beenstopped. The forward edge of lever 53 is connected to shaft 19 so thatpivotal movement-of the lever about its pivot point 56 moves the plunger18 laterally in its recess 17. A stop member 58 is adjustably secured tolink 53 between its pivot 56 and the shaft 19 so that the lateralmovement of plunger 18 is limited.

The lateral movement of lower plunger 24 is controlled by a lever 59pivotally mounted in a recess 60 in block 2, as indicated at 61. Aspring 62, mounted between the pivot 61 and the rear end of the lever,exerts a constant force tending to push the rear portion of lever 59outwardly from block 2. A stop member 63 is secured to lever 59 betweenpivot point 61 and shaft 25 to limit the inward movement of plunger 24.The rear edge of lever 59 is secured to an arm 64 having a cammed edge65 engaging a pin 66 projecting upwardly from shank 34. The pin 66 movesforwardly with shank 34 until it engages cammed edge 65, which it thenmoves laterally in one direction to cause a comparable lateral movementof the lower plunger 24 in the opposite direction; The operation of thevarious parts of the mechanism will now be described so that thefunctions of the parts may be clearly understood. Referring to Figures 1and 13, the plunger 18 is in position to receive a ring 12 on projection22 which abuts end 7 of ring aligning rod 6. The two preceding rings 12and 12" respectively are shown just after the first ring 12 has beenejected from the transfer block by the pusher blade 31, and the secondring 12" has dropped to the bottom of vertical recess 4. The aligningrod 6 is constantly vibrated during the operation of the ring settingmachine. The vibration of rod 6 causes the column of rings on the rod tomove towards the end 7, so that when the plunger 18 is in engagementwith the end 7, the end ring will be moved from the end 7 on to theprojection 22. The arm 42, shown in Figure by causing the upper portionof rocker arm 37 to move forwardly. The forward action of rocker arm 37pulls link 35 forwardly, thereby moving separator blade 30 forwardlybetween abutting end 7 of the aligning rod and the contiguous face ofprojection 22 of the upper plunger 18. The separator blade keeps thenext end ring on aligning rod 6 from becoming laterally displaced. Assoon as blade 38 has separated end ring 12 from the column of rings onthe aligning rod 6, the roller 48 engages carnmed edge 59 ofarm 51.

As arm 42 continues its upward pivotal movement the link 35 can not moveforwardly because the shoulder 67 abuts the rear face 29 of block 2, butthe elongated slot 43 permits shoe 44 to move forwardly, against theaction of springs 52, and the roller 48 engages arm 51 to move the rearportion of lever 53 towards the block 2. This movement of the rearportion of lever 53 causes a corresponding movement of shaft 19 intheopposite direction, so that upper plunger 18moves into recess 17 tostrip the ring 12 from projection 22 and cause it to drop into thevertical recess 4, as shown in Figure .15. The ring 12 comes to rest onthe top of lower plunger 24 which moves into recess 4 as the upperplunger moves into recess .17.

The arm 42 is then moved pivotally downwardly about its shaft v38. Thefirst portion of the downward movement of arm 42 causes shoe 44 toretract, and thereby releases arm 51 from its engagement with roller 48.This movement allows spring 57 to move the rear portionof lever 53 awayfrom block 2 so that upper plunger 18 is moved towards the end 7 ofaligning rod 6. During this rearward movement of shoe 44 the stud 48 ismoved into engagement with the rear end of slot 43. Continued downwardmovement of arm 42 causes retraction of link 35 and separator blade 30,so that the next ring can move from the end 7 of the aligning bar 6 onto the projection '22 of upper plunger-18'for the start of the nextsequence of operations. At the same time the separator blade 30 is beingretracted,-'the pin 66 is in engagement with cam edge 65 of arm 64 tomove the rear portion oflever 59 inwardly against'the action of spring62. This moves lower plunger 24 into recess '23 so that the ring 12which was resting on top of the lower plunger, falls to the bottom ofvertical recess 4. The next phase of the operation is the start of thesec-- ond upward pivotal movement of arm 42. The sequential movement ofparts in the upper portion of the transfer block is the sameas-hereinabove described in connection with the first upward pivotalmovement of arm 42. In addition to the movements described above, eachupward pivotal movement of arm 42 causes pin 66 to move out ofengagement with cam edge 65 of arm 64 so that spring 62 will move therear portion of lever 59 away from block 2. The forward portion of lever59, acting through shaft 25, moves lower plunger 24 towards recess 28,thereby positioning the ring 12 in front of the pusher blade 31, whichhas been retracted by the upward pivotal movement of arm 42. Theretraction of pusher blade 31 is caused directly by thelower portion ofrocker arm 37 which pulls shank 36 with it when it is moved away fromtransfer block 2 by oscillation of shaft 38 to which the arm 42 androcker arm 37 are rigidly secured. When' the'arm 42 is moved downwardlyagain, the pusher blade 31 is moved forwardly by the positiveinterconnection between the lower portion of rocker arm 37, the link 36,and the shank 34 of the pusher blade 31. As shown in Figure 5, thesetting die 68 comprises a steel block 69 having an anvil 7t) projectingrearwardly therefrom. A groove 71 is provided in the upper rear edge ofamino to"'facilitate positioning of the headed end of the ring. A fixedstop member 72 engages the bottom end of the ring to position itproperly, and a pivoted stop memher 73 engages the headed end of ring 12so as to retain it'in proper position. Block2 is provided with abaseplate 74 which has a groove 75 extendingforwardlv' from the front edgeof slot 28 to the front edge of the base plate. The groove 75facilitates movement of the rings across the base plate as they aremoved forwardly into engagement with the setting die.

From the above it will be noted that as the second ring 12" falls invertical recess 4 when lower plunger 24 is moved into recess 23, asshown in Figure 13, the first ring 12 has been pushed into engagementwith the ring setting die, and the third ring 12 is positioned on theprojection 22 of upper plunger 18. All of this movement takes placeduring the downward pivotal movement of arm 42. When the arm 42 is movedupwardly, the second ring 12" is moved laterally from the bottom ofrecess 4 into recess 28 by lower plunger 24, and the third ring 12 dropsfrom upper portion of vertical recess 4 to the top .of lower plunger 24,as shown in Figure l5. The next downward movement of arm 42 causes thesecond ring 12" to be pushed into engagement with the ring setting die,the third ring 12 falls in vertical recess 4 from the top of lowerplunger 24 to the bottom of the recess 4 as the plunger 24 is moved .outof recess 4 into recess 23, and a fourth ring is positioned onprojection 22 of upper plunger 18. The transfer block has two ringspositioned therein at all times, with a third ring positioned on theprojection 22 of upper plunger 18 as one of the two rings is beingpushed into engagement with the ring setting die and the other of thetwo rings is falling to the bottom of vertical recess 4. Although itrequires two complete cycles of the moving parts to transfer each ringfrom the end of aligning rod 6 into position in engagement with the ringsetting die, 3

one ring is positioned in such engagement every time the arm 42completes one downward pivotal movement. Accordingly it is obvious thatthe operation of positioning rings into engagement with the setting dieis twice as fast as if the machine worked on only one ring at a time.

When each ring is positioned in the ring setting die shown in Fig. 5, aprong plate 77, shown in Figure 12, is positioned with one hole 78engaging the headed end 13 of a ring 12. As the punch press is moveddownwardly the punch pin strikes head 13 of the ring, thereby swagingthe ring end around the hole 78 to secure the ring securely in place inthe prong plate.

Although We have described a preferred embodiment of our invention inconsiderable detail, it will be understood that the description isintended to be illustrative, rather than restrictive, as many details ofstructure may be modified or changed without departing from the spiritor scope of our invention. Accordingly, we do not desire to berestricted to the exact structure described, except as limited by theappended claims.

We claim:

1 1. A transfer block for ring setting machines, comprising a blockhaving a vertical recess medial of its front edge, the upper front edgeof said block being cut away on one side of said vertical recess, atransverse recess in said block aligned horizontally with said cut awayportion and extending from the side of said vertical recess oppositesaid cut away portion, a plunger mounted in said transverse recess,means for moving said plunger transversely of said block withinpredetermined limits, said plunger having a projection on one sidethereof movable into' said 'cut away portion when said plunger is movedto the limit of its movement in one direction, said projection having aring mounted thereon when said projection is positioned in said cut awayportion, said transverse recess being of less height than the overallheight of the ring mounted on-said projection, means for retracting saidplunger into said transverse recess, the edge of said block adjacentsaid transverse recess engaging said ring and stripping it from saidprojection upon retraction of said plunger thereby causing it to fallinto said vertical recess, the lower portion of the front edge of saidblock having a recess adjacent said vertical recess, another plungerpositioned in said last mentioned recess, means for moving said lastmentioned plunger trans versely to move said ring transversely of saidblock from said vertical recess, and a pusher blade aligned with saidring after it has been moved transversely from said vertical recess,said pusher blade being reciprocable in said block to push said ringforwardly out of said block.

2. In combination with a transfer block having a sepa rator blade and apusher blade reciprocable therein, and a plunger movable at right anglesto said blades, said plunger having a shaft secured thereto, a linkconnected to said separator blade and another link connected to saidpusher blade, a rocker-arm connected to both of said links whereby saidblades are alternately reciprocated in said block, a lever pivoted tosaid block, said lever having one end secured to the shaft of saidplunger, an L-shaped arm secured to the other end of said lever, and ashoe mounted on one of said links, said shoe engaging said L: shaped armand being operable after said. separatorblade is inits-forward positionto move said L-shapedann transversely relative to said block and therebymove said lever 'pivotally, said pivotal movement of the lever beingeffective to move said plunger away from said separator blade.

3. In combination-with-a transfer block,- a rod having a pluralityof-rings aligned thereon, a plunger having a projection thereon, meansto move said plunger to bring said projection into engagement with oneend of-said rod, said rod being vibrated to move the end ring from saidrod on tosaid projection, a separator blade, ineaus to move saidseparator blade between said projection and said end of the rod, andmeans operable when said sepae ratorblade is in its forward position tomovesaid plunger away from said separator blade. 7 I

4. In combination with a transfer block, a rod having a plurality ofrings aligned thereon, a plunger having a projection thereon, means tomove said plungerrto posi-, tion said projection in engagement with oneend of said rod, said rod being vibrated to move the end ring from saidrod on' to saidprojection, a separator blade, a link connected at oneend to said separator blade and extending rearwardly of said block, ashoe connected to said link, means to reciprocate said link to move saidseparator blade forwardly into position between the end of said rod andsaid projection,'means to movesaidshoe forwardly when said link is inits forward position, and means operatively connected to said shoe andsaidplunger to move said plunger transversely from said separator bladewhen said shoe is moved forwardly. r

5. In combination with a transfer block, a rod hav-. ing a plurality of.rings aligned thereon, a plunger having a projection on one sidethereof, means to move said plunger to positionsaid projection inengagement with one end of said 'rod, a shaft extending from the otherside of said plunger through said block, a leverengaging the end of saidshaft, said lever being pivoted adjacent one edge of the transfer block,said rod being vibrated to'move the end ring from said rod on tosaidprojection, a separator blade mounted in the transfer block, a linkconnected at one end to said separator blade and extending rearwardly ofsaid block, means to reciprocate said link to move said separator bladeforwardly into position between the end of said rod and said projection,an arm secured at one end to one end of said lever, a shoe connected tosaid link, and means operable when said separator blade is in itsforward position to move said shoe into engagement with said arm to movesaid arm transversely relative to said transfer block and thereby causesaid lever to move about its pivot, said pivotal movement of said levercausing said plunger to move transversely away from said separatorblade.

'6. A transfer block having a separator blade and a pusher bladealignedvertically therein, a plunger aligned horizontally with saidseparator blade and another plunger aligned horizontally with saidpusher blade, each'of said plungers having a shaft extending throughsaid transfer block, separate links connected to said separator bladeand said pusher blade, both of said links being connected to a rocker'armoperable to alternately reciprocate said blades, a lever pivoted tosaid transfer block, said lever having one end secured to the shaft ofsaid first mentioned plunger, an L-shaped arm secured to the other endof said lever, a shoe mounted on one of said links and operable to movesaid L-shaped arm transversely of said transfer block when saidseparator blade is in its forward position, thereby moving said leverpivotally and also moving said first mentioned plunger away from saidseparator blade, another lever pivoted to said transfer bloclqsaid lastmentioned lever having one end secured to the shaft of said secondmentioned plunger, an arm secured at one end to the other end of saidlast mentioned lever and having a cammed edge adjacent its other end,and a projection on said pusher blade engaga'ole with said 'cammed edgeto move said last mentioned arm transversely of said transfer block whensaid arm is moved forwardly, said last mentioned arm moving said lastmentioned lever pivotally upon such transverse movement to move saidsecond mentioned plunger transversely of said pusher blade in the samedirection as the movement of said first mentioned plunger.

7. A transfer block having a vertical recess medial of its front edge,upper and lower transverse recesses communicating with said verticalrecess, a plunger transversely movable in said upper transverse recess,another plunger transversely movable in said lower transverse recess,each of said'plungers having a shaft extending through said transferblock, a pair of levers pivoted to said transfer block and securedrespectively to the ends of said shafts, a pair of arms securedrespectively to the ends of said levers, each of said arms having acammed edge, a. separator blade and a pusher blade mounted in saidblock, separate links connected to each of said blades, a rocker armconnected to both of said links, said rocker arm being operable toreciprocate said blade alternately, a shoe mounted on the link connectedto said separator blade, a projection mounted on said pusher blade, saidshoe being movable forwardly by its link when said separator blade is inits forward position, said shoe and said projection being eachengageable with the cammed surface of one of said arms to move said armstransversely of said blockalternately in the same direction upon forwardmovement of said shoe and said projection, said arms acting through saidlevers to move said plungers alternately in the same direction, andspring means urging said levers in the opposite direction and operablewhen said separator and pusher blades are moving rearwardly to move saidplungers in the opposite direction, the forward and rearward movement ofsaid shoe and said projection being synchronized to move said upper andlower plungers simultaneously in opposite directions.

8. In a ring setting machine, a transfer block provided with a pair ofhorizontal slots aligned vertically with each other, a vertical recesscontiguous to one side of said slots, a separator blade reciprocable inone of said slots, at pusher blade reciprocable in said other slot, apair of vertically aligned transverse recesses communicating with saidvertical recess, a plunger movable transversely in one' of saidtransverse recesses, another plunger movable transversely in said othertransverse recess, and syu chronized mechanism for reciprocating saidblade simultaneously in opposite directions and for moving said plungerssimultaneously in opposite directions, the upper plunger moving into itsrecess simultaneously with the forward movement of said separator bladein its slot.

9. In a transfer block adapted to receive a plurality of rings fedsuccessively to said block from a continuous line of aligned rings, aseparator blade operable to hold back all of the continuous line ofrings except for the end ring to cause the rings to be fed to the blockindividually, a pair of laterally movable plungers operable tosuccessively engage a ring fed to said block, a pusher blade operable tomove a ring forwardly of said block after it has been engaged by thesecond of said plungers, and means synchronizing the movements of saidblades and said plungers, said plungers being moved in oppositedirections so that as one plunger clears the vertical recess the otherplunger enters it, the first of said plungers moving out of engagementwith its ring simultaneously with the forward movement of said separatorblade, whereby said rings may be continuously and successively moved bycontrolled stages from the point at which they are, fed to the transferblock to a position forwardly of said block.

it). in a transfer block adapted to successively receive a series ofindividually fed rings, a separator blade reciprocable in a slot in saidblock to regulate the individual feeding of said rings from said seriesof rings, a pusher blade reciprocable in another slot in said block tomove a ring from said block to a position forwardly of said block, apair of lateral recesses in said block, a laterally movable plunger ineach of said recesses, a vertical recess in said block contiguous toeach of said slots and said lateral recesses, and a rocker armoperatively connected to each of said blades and said plungers, saidrocker arm moving said blades and said plungers in synchronization, saidplungers being moved in opposite directions simultaneously to enter andleave the vertical recess, the first of said plungers moving into itslateral recess to drop aring in said vertical recess simultaneously withthe forward movement of said separator blade, to move rings continuouslyand successively from the point at which they are initially received bysaid block, through.

said vertical recess and into position forwardly of said 7 block.

11. In a transfer block for transferring rings from supporting means, apair of vertically aligned slots extending through said transfer blockfrom the front face thereof to the opposite face thereof, a verticalrecess connecting said slots, a plunger movable transversely within saidblock, the path of travel of said plunger intersecting said verticalrecess, a separator blade, a pusher blade, said separator and pusherblades being reciprocable within the upper and lower slots of said blockrespectively at right angles to the movement of said plunger, saidvertical recess extending in a vertical plane intersecting the forwardportion of the path of travel of each of said blades, a shoulder at theintersection of said upper slot and said vertical recess for stripping aring from said plunger as said plunger is retracted from said verticalrecess, separate links connected to said separator blade and said pusherblade, a rocker arm connected to both of said links whereby said bladesare alternately reciprocated in said slots, and means actuated by saidrocker arm after said separator blade is in its forward position to movesaid plunger away from said separator blade. i

12. In a transfer block for transferring rings from supporting means, apair of vertically aligned slots extending through said transfer blockfrom the front face thereof to the opposite face thereof, a verticalrecess connecting said slots, 21 plunger movable transversely withinsaid block, the path of travel of said plunger intersecting saidvertical recess, a separator blade, a pusher blade, said separator andpusher blades being reciprocable within the upper and lower slots ofsaid block respectively at right angles to the movement of said plunger,said vertical recess extending in a vertical plane intersecting the'forward portion of the path of travel of each of said blades, a shoulder atthe intersection of said upper slot and said vertical recess forstripping a ring-from said plunger as said plungeris retracted from saidvertical recess, separate links connected to said separator blade andsaid pusher blade, a rocker arm connected to both of said links wherebysaid blades are alternately reciprocated in said slots, means actuatedby said rocker arm after said separator blade is in its forward positionto retract said plunger from said vertical recess, said means includinga lever pivoted to said block, and spring means engaging said lever tomove it in the reverse direction when said separator blade is movedrearwardly, thereby moving said plunger in the reverse direction.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTSStenman July 30, 1935 Ward Feb. 17, 1942 Ward Oct. 24, 1944 Fether Sept.5, 1950 Van Sittert et al May 28, 1951 Buenger et a1 Feb. 2, 1954

